onefishmike Posted August 18, 2013 Report Share Posted August 18, 2013 Has anyone ever had a problem with getting a big cat in the net? I find it quite difficult once they get to over 60 lbs. When I fished the Ebro we had a special sling made of reinforced PVC and with two aluminium poles around 10 ft long. We slid the fish into it and closed the poles together, then it was easy enough for 2 guys to lift a heavy fish out. However you can't really carry gear like this around when you are fishing for carp. The best way of course is unhook the fish in the water and release it without weighing or to get right into the water with the fish but you can't always do that e.g. when you are on your own, when it's cold, in the dark etc. The problem with trying to net them is that they are just too long and tend to slide out backwards, which is not doing the fish a lot of good because it tends to remove the slime. I find the best way is to slide it across one unhooking mat, placed partly in the water, onto another. The fish can be grasped by the bottom jaw with a gloved hand after carefully locating the position of the hook. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz Posted August 18, 2013 Report Share Posted August 18, 2013 i wouldnt net a fish that size unless i had no choice tbh. jaw it out if possible. i have a 60 inch dedicated cat net which would easily get a 60 in but even then i would only net it if i had to. when netting a cat once its head i near the spreader block lower your rod and release the pressure, its not easy at first cause it is not natural but you will find that by lowering you rod the cat will swim down and into the net rather than backwards and out of it. try it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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